Tag Archives: Trusting strangers

Have you ever been in the group team building exercise where someone is going to fall and you have to catch them?

Have you ever had the same thought I did, “Of course they are going to catch me! They won’t just let me fall!”

Time and time again, people stand posed to fall and have friends or co-workers catch them. Time and time again, people are caught.

I’ve often wondered if there were times when people were not caught.

Then I watched this video.

On the Today Show, Matt Lauer called it the “dumbest thing he’s ever seen.”

I think it’s brilliant.

How many times do we put our trust in someone who is caught completely off-guard?

How often do we place our trust in someone we barely know?

Do we end up flat on our backs?

I would love to see that scenario played out again. This time with a warning. If the unsuspecting people were given a sufficient warning, I have a hunch they would catch the falling person.

If you humbly ask for help in a clear way, people, even strangers, will surprise you with their generosity and aid.

But that is not the same as true trust.

Trusting someone who is not faithful when trouble comes
is like a bad tooth or a disabled foot. Proverbs 25:19

Now, let’s look at this a completely different way:

How many times do we set ourselves up, giving someone an opportunity to hold our trust, but in reality, we are setting ourselves up to fall? I see this over and over with teens. They tell their bff not to tell anyone who their crush is, only to be heartbroken when news gets back to them that bff 1 told bff 2 who immediately texted bff 3 who then facebook messaged the teen to tell them what they heard. It’s not just teens… a mom shares her heart with a friend from her Bible Study group, knowing she’s prone to gossip, yet thinking, “since we are in Bible Study group together, what happens in Bible Study stays in Bible Study.” You see where this is going… misplaced trust.

Misplaced Trust = Trust Fall Fail

When you share your heart with a friend, remember there is a friend that will NEVER allow you to fall.

The Lord is the one you will trust in.
He will keep your feet from being caught in a trap. Proverbs 3:26

Those who know your name will trust in you,
for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9:10